tale, a reporter and his crew held for five days in syria, now free unharmed. nbcsaysrichardengelandhis crew, safe and out of the country. nick paton walsh following this story. a dramatic series of event. >> engel's crew crossed into syria on thursday. nothing was heard. no ransom request, no contact. until they appeared to be free on monday. subsequently emerges, they were picked up, mr. engel says, by a men in ski masks. 15 of them, who leapt out of the bushes and took his team as hostages. they were moved around the country in the back of an open pickup, blind folded and bound, but otherwise not harmed. they were transferred to another location. this all happening in the north of syria. now, during that journey, they seem to have come across a group of rebels called the atar al sham brigade, who entered into a gun fight with their captors. it caused the nbc team to be free. >> no physical harm. but psychological farm. fa harm. fake executions, asking them which one of them they would like to be executed first. >> they believe that there was a reb regime to the loyalty. mr. e